the perks of online dating
by olympicmayhem
Summary: In which Ryuji met a girl online who turned out to be someone way out of his league.


**Disclaimer: I don't own Persona.**

* * *

It's not that Ryuji's jealous of Ren and Yusuke for having girlfriends. Of course he isn't. Sure, he's tried to pick girls up here and there (they always end in failure though) but it's not like he actually wanted to be in a relationship. He's happy to be single. He can go with whoever he wants. He doesn't have to lose his money to a woman. Being single is actually great!

That's what he always tells himself whenever he sees the other two with their girlfriends (Yusuke and Futaba came as a huge shock to everyone. They really didn't see it coming). What's so great about being with a woman anyway? He thinks. Women are loud. They're far too cunning. They try to control every aspect of your life. So why then, do Ren and Yusuke look so happy whenever they are with their significant others?

Why does Yusuke, who is always the butt of Futaba's jokes, look at her with such passion? Heck, his painting that won a recent competition is a portrait of the short girl.

Why does Ren look at Ann like he's never seen a woman before? Sure, Ann is beautiful (very, extremely, beautiful). He remembers that time he first saw the woman in Ren's laptop screen when the guy decided online English tutoring was the way to go. Man, he thought back then. She is such a babe. But after getting to know Ann these past few months (not counting the first two months she was in Japan and pretended not to understand Japanese. That was uncool), he found out that the blonde is really loud and can be bossy sometimes. Only her looks totally made up for her lousy attitude.

* * *

"Morgana, do you think having a girlfriend is really that fun?"

He was lounging in their living room watching tv, with nobody but Morgana for company. With Ren and Futaba busy, the task of caring for the cat fell on Ryuji's shoulders. The cat is curled up beside him on the couch, and at the mention of his name, opened an eye and let out a soft purr. Ryuji scratched the top of his small head and continued.

"I mean, ever since those two got themselves girlfriends, they've been leaving the two of us alone. 'S not cool at all." He frowned and groaned, glaring at the flat screen before grabbing the remote from the coffee table and turning the thing off. There wasn't anything interesting on anyway, and besides, it's not like any of his favorite anime were scheduled today. He picked his phone up instead, scrolling down on his Facebook feed to check what's happening out in the world.

There were pictures of Ren and Ann everywhere. Ann really likes posting a lot in social media. He scrolled past them. Futaba's shared posts were a lot more interesting: they were posts about the hottest anime of the season, as well as limited edition figurines and the top ten best-selling manga of the year. He gave those posts likes. Makoto likes sharing posts about recent research studies. He just scrolls past them too. In his mind, he can hear Makoto lecturing him. It was bad enough that the woman would berate him daily about his grades (he was barely passing in almost every subject). He didn't want to be reminded of them in social media as well.

He was about to close the app, thinking there was nothing interesting going on in the internet as well, when he saw an ad about online dating. He's seen a bunch of ads about online dating of course, the internet is brimming with them, but he never really gave them a second thought until his recent (one-sided) conversation with Morgana. He throws the cat a quick glance.

"What do you think, Morgana?" he asks. "Think we should give this a try? It's only for research after all." The cat gave a loud meow that he took as a sign of agreement. The blond grinned. He pressed the link and quickly filled out the application, setting "skulldude" as his username. He filled in the about me, likes, and dislikes section and snapped a quick photo to set it as his profile picture.

He threw the phone back to the couch as soon as he was done setting his profile up. All he had to do now was wait for a notification. With another grin, he stood up and stretched his limbs.

"C'mon Morgana. Let's go out for a walk."

* * *

Ryuji wasn't actually expecting someone to hit the heart button on his profile. Sure he made it, but the whole thing was full of so much shit that Ryuji was sure nobody would actually like it, so it came as a pleasant surprise when his phone buzzed with the online dating site's notification one day.  
He opened the site and checked his notifications to find a girl, whose username is "shogiprincess" with a lily set as her profile picture, like his profile. He checked the girl's own profile and saw that she was online.

"Oh man," Ryuji said with a grin, locking himself up in his room. "Should I message her?"

He studied shogiprincess' profile but there wasn't really much to see. She hasn't posted any photos of herself. The only thing in her likes section is shogi (it was pretty obvious, even without her putting it there), and that she lives somewhere in Tokyo.

"What if she's not pretty?" He mumbled to himself, scratching the back of his head. "But… it's not like it matters if she beautiful or not as long as she's a good person… I guess."

The blond crashed down on his bed, still staring at the profile. Oh well, he thinks, it's not like he's serious about this anyway. Besides, he can always stop whenever he wants to. He pressed the message button and sent shogiprincess a short greeting. It takes her a few minutes to reply.

 **shogiprincess:** Hello.

 **skulldude:** Hey! I'm Ryuji Sakamoto!

 **shogiprincess:** It's nice to meet you, Sakamoto-kun. I'm Hifumi.

Oh man, Ryuji thought. He was getting serious Yusuke vibes from this girl. Maybe she's also into art?

 **skulldude:** Nice to meetcha Hifumi! Whatcha up to?

 **shogiprincess:** Oh… nothing much, really.

Ryuji isn't really sure how to respond to that. Heck, he was tempted to just leave the conversation. He's just really bad at handling conversations like this. He was about to close his screen when another message popped up.

 **shogiprincess:** I'm sorry! I'm really boring, right?

Ryuji was quick to deny.

 **skulldude:** No no! Not at all!

 **shogiprincess:** I'm sorry! In truth, I'm actually trying to figure out how this thing works so I couldn't really think of a topic to talk about!

Ryuji actually laughed. Does this Hifumi person suck at using the internet? That's adorable. Ryuji typed out his reply.

 **skulldude:** Ooooooohhhhhhhh lolol really?

 **shogiprincess:** Yes. I don't use the internet so much. Is it weird?

 **skulldude:** Yeah. But, like, weird in a good way.

 **shogiprincess:** Thank you.

 **skulldude:** How'd you find out about this site though?

 **shogiprincess:** Oh. My friend told me about it and made this account for me. I don't really understand what it's for though.

 **skulldude:** If you have anything to ask about the internet, you can always ask me : )

 **shogiprincess:** Thank you. You're really kind.

Ryuji ended up spending the whole day talking to Hifumi, answering questions she's got about the internet. It turns out that she didn't actually know that the site they were chatting on is an online dating site. She doesn't even know what an online dating site is until Ryuji explained. She must be thinking about shoji the whole day, he thinks.

But it's a nice feeling, Ryuji thought. Being the more knowledgeable one feels nice. Up until now, Ryuji has always been the one needing help; asking Ren what this means, having Makoto explain that. He was never the one being asked for information.

* * *

Ryuji spends the next few days getting to know the girl from the dating site better. Hifumi would usually talk about shogi (Ryuji pretends to understand). He would usually talk about his two roommates. He spends more time at home now, not even once complaining whenever Yusuke or Ren (or both) would go out on a date. His two friends find it odd that Ryuji Sakamoto isn't opening his mouth to complain about something (Ryuji always finds something to complain about) but the two didn't say anything. They did notice that he spends a lot of time glued on his phone though.

* * *

 **skulldude:** Hey Hifumi. Whatcha up to?

He was bored and decided to kill time by chatting with Hifumi. It was Wednesday night and both Yusuke and Ren were out, leaving Ryuji alone with Morgana again. Ren was going to the convenience store to work and Yusuke was going to Shibuya to do some late night people watching.

"At least you guys aren't going out on dates," he had jokingly called out as the two were leaving, snickering.

 **shogiprincess:** Hey Sakamoto-kun! I'm out running errands for my mom. You?

 **skulldude:** I'm boooooooooored.

 **shogiprincess:** Where are your friends?

 **skulldude:** Out. Ren's working and Yusuke's in Shibuya, people watching.

 **shogiprincess:** Oh! I'm actually in Shibuya right now!

 **skulldude:** For real? Cool! You might actually see Yusuke! He's a tall guy with purple hair and a brooding expression.

 **shogiprincess:** I'll keep an eye out for him ^^

 **skulldude:** If you ever find him, don't be scared of him.

 **shogiprincess:** Scared? For what reason?

 **skulldude:** He can be a pretty intimidating guy. But I'm not worried. I'm sure you guys would get along.

 **shogiprincess:** What makes you say that?

 **skulldude:** You guys sound pretty similar to me.

 **shogiprincess:** How so?

 **skulldude:** You guys are just sooooooo formal. Even in text.

 **shogiprincess:** Oh.

The two-word response made Ryuji nervous for some reason. Did he say something wrong? He scanned his previous messages. Is it because he called Hifumi formal? It doesn't mean anything bad, does it?

 **skulldude:** I didn't mean you were boring or anything! It's nice actually. Makes you more refined that way, ya know? Most girls I know don't even have manners!

 **shogiprincess:** I don't really mind, Sakamoto-kun ^^ I'm actually quite happy that I remind you of a close friend. It makes us feel more connected somehow, doesn't it?

Ryuji thought about it. The idea of feeling more connected makes him feel something funny in his stomach.

 **skulldude:** Ya know, you can just call me Ryuji. We're friends now, aren't we?

A few minutes passed before she replied.

 **shogiprincess:** Okay…. Ryuji-kun : )

* * *

"Hey Ryuji. Wanna hang out?" Ren invites, one Saturday morning. The three of them were having breakfast at the kitchen/dining room. Morgana was eating from his bowl in the corner. The blond looked up from his bowl of cereal and stared at the black-haired man with a raised eyebrow.

"You guys don't have dates today? It is a weekend, ya know."

Yusuke let out a cough to get both men's attention before saying, "Actually, about that... Ren and I talked the other day."

"Uh-huh. About what?"

"Yusuke and I think that we've been spending too much time with the ladies," Ren answered. "And that you may be feeling a bit lonely about it."

Ryuji guffawed, earning him looks of confusion from the other two. Yusuke frowned.

"It is rude to laugh at us. After all, we were only concerned about you."

Ryuji shook his head. Still laughing, he was able to form out "Sorry. But maaaaaaaaan. I didn't know you guys care about me that much. I feel touched."

"You most certainly do not look like it." The purple-haired man replied.

"I really am touched, man." Ryuji said, finally able to stop the laughing. "I didn't think you'd be worried about me at all."

"We're friends," Ren says with a small smile. "You may have caused me to fail English but of course you're still important."

"Duuuuude, get over it already. It's actually thanks to us that you got a girl, ain't that right Yusuke?" The blond gave him a huge grin and a thumbs up before saying, "Thanks anyway man. But I'm good. You guys can go have fun with Ann and Futaba. Besides, I have Morgana, don't I?" Yusuke looked at him with a raised brow.

"Just a month ago you would always complain about being left alone to care for the cat."

Ryuji gave him a bashful grin and just answered with "Well, people change. I'm starting to enjoy my alone time."

"And what could have made you change?"

Ren remains silent, listening to the conversation, but Ryuji knows that his interest is piqued. Well, there was no use hiding Hifumi to them, he thought. It's not like she's a secret girlfriend or anything. She's not even his girlfriend.

"I've just been chatting with some girl I met online is all," he tells them with a shrug.

"You met a girl online?"

"Why do you sound so surprised?"

Yusuke shook his head, not bothering to answer the question. Instead, he throws out another. "What's her name?"

"Hifumi. She studies in a different uni but she's the same age as us."

"Have you seen her face?"

"Uhhhh… not really, no"

It was Ren's turn to ask. "Why not?"

Ryuji shrugged. "I dunno. It just never crossed my mind to ask I guess?"

His two friends looked at him with exasperation. He looked back at them in confusion.

"What's with the faces?"

"How do you know she's not phishing you?" Ren asked.

"What if she's just using you?" Yusuke continued.

"What if she just wants you money?"

"How could you date a girl without knowing what she looks like?"

Ryuji held both hands up to stop his friends' interrogation.

"Woah, woah, woah, woah, woah," he said before forming the letter T with his hands. "First off, I never said anything about dating. The two of us are just friends. Online friends. Aint't that kinda shit really popular nowadays?

"Second, Hifumi has never asked me for money. We've known each other for a month and a half and it's nothing but telling each other stuff like what we did for the day. And third, she seems like a genuinely nice girl."

The other two seemed to relax a little. They were silent for a moment until Yusuke speaks up again.

"Well. I guess it's fine if you're alright with it," Ren nods his agreement. Yusuke continued. "I am bit surprised to know that the word 'genuinely' is in your vocabulary. I would have thought the word too profound for you."

"Hey!" Ryuji exclaimed, scrunching both of his eyebrows. "What's that supposed to mean?!"

Ren just laughed.

* * *

"Ryuji met what?!" Ann exclaimed, one Monday a week after his talk with Ren and Yusuke. The blonde was hanging out in their apartment (Yusuke had gone to Inokashira Park to do a bit of people watching) when Ryuji and Ren both told the girl about his new friend. How was the topic brought up? Well the three of them were watching television (while Ann and Ryuji were talking loudly) when a beautiful girl with long black hair appeared. Ryuji didn't catch her name because Ann just had to complain about the lack of desserts in their apartment, but the girl in the television started talking about shogi and Ryuji made an off-handed comment about how Hifumi was also interested in shogi. Ann had asked who Hifumi is so they both told her the story of how Ryuji made an online friend.

"Why'd ya gotta sound so surprised? It's just an online friend. Didn't ya two meet each other online too?"

Ann frowned. "Yeah but that's different. Ren and I had to video call each other every day for his English classes. This is just a girl you met online."

"What's the big deal?" he sighed, exasperated. "Hifumi's a real nice girl, ya hear me? Besides, you guys don't know her at all."

"You've only known her for more than a month," Ren silently reminded him. He threw his bespectacled friend a glare.

"I really don't get why you would make such a big fuss outta this," he tells the blonde. "Can't you just take my word for it?" Ann's frown only furrowed.

"I'm your friend, Ryuji," she started, glancing at Ren every now and then for support. "Of course I'd make a fuss. A lot of people have been tricked online you know."

"But I'm telling you that Hifumi's nothing like that," Ryuji explained. "She's a very sweet and quiet girl. She'd never do anything like that. And how many times do I have to say that we're only friends before all of you would stop thinking about this nonsense?"

Ann sighed, resigned. "Fine," she tells him. "I'll believe you," The corners of Ryuji's mouth start to curl upwards. "If you meet up with her." His face morphs into an expression of shock.

"Wait, what?!"

"C'mon, it'll be fun!" Ann grinned, already back to her cheerful self. "If this Hifumi girl's really as good as you make her out to be, then I'm happy you were able to get such a catch!"

"I already told you! We're just frie—"

"Yes, I know already." Ann cuts off, waving a dismissing hand in the air. "You guys are just "friends". But from the way you defend her, I'd totally say you have a crush on her."

Ryuji went silent for a second, his face turning a deep shade of red. Sure, he'd get butterflies whenever he sees her online and yeah he admits that talking to her makes him feel like he's floating but that couldn't possibly mean that Ann is right, right? After all, Ann's just a silly girl who loves romance. He stares at his friend who's been silent for awhile now.

"Ren," he pleads. "Dude. Help me."

Ren looked back at Ryuji.

"It can't hurt to try. You can prove to us that she isn't a bad person too."

Seeing that he won't be getting backup, Ryuji sighed in resignation.

"Fine, fine." He took the remote from the coffee table and changed the channel. "Guess I'll have to do it."

* * *

That night, Ryuji finds himself staring at his phone while lying down on his bed. The prospect of seeing Hifumi face-to-face makes him nervous and he doesn't know why. It's not that he believes that Hifumi is just a fraud, it was something else and he just couldn't lay a finger on it. He groaned and sat up. Oh well, he thinks. Maybe Hifumi won't agree anyway.

Seeing as Hifumi isn't online, Ryuji decided to send her a text instead (they had shared contact information a week ago when Hifumi said she would be going somewhere without internet connection).

 **Ryuji:** Hey!

It took her a while to respond.

Ryuji decided to take a bath while waiting for her text. When he went back, he checked his phone to find a notification from the girl.

 **Hifumi:** Oh, Ryuji-kun. Hello!

 **Ryuji:** What's up?

 **Hifumi:** Oh… just running some errands for my mother. As usual.

 **Ryuji:** You always run errands for your mother huh?

 **Hifumi:** Well… yes. I don't really like them but I can't disobey her, can I?

 **Ryuji:** Welp, that's true.

Ryuji hesitated before sending out another text.

 **Ryuji:** So I was thinking…

 **Hifumi:** Yes?

 **Ryuji:** Would it be possible to meet up sometime?

 **Hifumi:** Oh.

Ryuji waited for another reply. Is she going to accept? Is she going to decline? Damn woman, he thought. Stop making me nervous and just reply, dammit! His phone vibrated in his hand again. He swiftly opened the new message to read it.

 **Hifumi:** Sure, I don't mind. When are we gonna meet up?

 **Ryuji:** How about this Friday at the walkway in Shibuya? At around 2 pm?

 **Hifumi:** Okay. I'll see you on Friday then.

 **Ryuji:** Yeah. See you.

* * *

Friday came in the blink of an eye. Ryuji was nervous (not that he'd tell the others. He kept insisting that he's cool with it. Ann had raised an eyebrow). All of his friends were in Leblanc. Futaba, Makoto, and Haru have been given a brief summary by Ann and Makoto has gone full mom mode on him. He tuned her out a minute into her speech.

He checked the time and saw that it was already 1:30. Yongen isn't far from Shibuya and it only takes one train to get there but he doesn't want to be late for their first meeting. He stood up. He can feel his friends' eyes on him.

"Just call us if you need anything, okay?" It was Haru who spoke in her gentle voice. Ryuji gave her a smile.

"I will. Thanks Haru."

"And don't worry! If she ever does something, I'd hack her phone to get dirt on her!" Futaba excitedly said. Her boyfriend shook his head.

"I'd really rather you don't hack into anybody's cellphone."

"Oh shut up, stupid Inari."

Ryuji snickered and waved at all of them before leaving the café.

* * *

Thanks to the rush hour that Ryuji hadn't really thought about, he arrived at Shibuya ten minutes late. He pulled his phone out of his pocket to text Hifumi.

 **Ryuji:** Hey. I'm here. Sorry I'm late.

 **Hifumi:** It's alright. I just got here myself.

 **Ryuji:** Cool. What are you wearing?

 **Hifumi:** I'm wearing a checkered dress and leggings.

Ryuji craned his head up to try searching in the sea of people.

 **Hifumi:** I'm the one with the long black hair with a ribbon at the side.

 **Ryuji:** Where are you?

 **Hifumi:** I'm by the railings.

 **Ryuji:** Okay. Don't leave. I'm coming for you. If a blond suddenly approaches you, don't be alarmed. It's just me.

 **Hifumi:** Okay.

Ryuji kept his phone back in his pocket and tried to move against the sea of people walking in and out of the passageway. Finally he was able to see a girl with long black hair wearing leggings, staring down at Shibuya. Her long hair obscures his view of her dress so he wasn't sure if it was checkered. He walked over to her, hoping that it was Hifumi and not some other girl. He tapped her shoulder.

"Hey Hifu….mi…." As the girl in front of him turns around to face him, Ryuji couldn't keep the shock out of his face. She's beautiful. More beautiful than any girl he's ever seen. More beautiful than even Ann Takamaki in his opinion. The butterflies in his stomach started squirming inside him as he realized something. He's seen this girl before. One time. When he was talking with Ann and Ren. She was that girl on tv.

Hifumi gave him a warm smile.

"Hello, Ryuji-kun. It's nice to finally meet you."

Man, thought Ryuji. Even her voice sounds better than anyone else's. It was soft and sweet and sophisticated and he was in love. There was no doubt about it. And oh boy does it suck because he's sure that Hifumi would never like him the same way. After all, he was just a stupid college student with a loud mouth. He was totally different from her. Before she could say anything more, Ryuji ran back in the direction he had come, leaving the girl confused.

* * *

His friends were happily chatting when he went back to Leblanc. Ann noticed him first.

"Hey!" She greeted. "That was quick. What, did she bail on you?"

Ryuji slumped down on the nearest booth and tried to catch his breath. The others watched him anxiously. Finally he said, "Nah. I ran away from her."

"What?!" they all exclaimed.

"Why? Is she a phisher after all? Should I call the police?" Haru asked.

"I can call my sister right now if you want," Makoto added. Ryuji just shook his head and lied down on his seat.

"Nah it was nothing like that. She's actually really beautiful." Yusuke frowned.

"Then why did you run away from her?"

"She's too good for me, man."

"But I thought you said you two are just-" he didn't get to finish his sentence as Ann stomped on his foot. The artist winced in pain. Ann stared at Ryuji, her azure eyes soft.

"What happened?"

"We've seen her before, Ann. You and Ren and I." The blonde furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

"What? I don't get it."

"That day we were talking about her. In our apartment. There was a girl on tv talking about shogi. Don't you remember?" Ann nodded but still remained confused. A dawn of understanding reached her boyfriend, however.

"That still doesn't explain why you ran away." He told the blond. Ryuji groaned.

"You don't get it Ren. You're smart and handsome and you're quite popular with the ladies. Plus, you have a beautiful girlfriend," he pointed a finger at Ann. "I'm just stupid, blond Ryuji who wouldn't even be able to get to college if I didn't have my track scholarship." He stood up. "Whatever. I'm going home."  
Ryuji left the café before anyone could speak another word.

* * *

It wasn't usual for Ryuji to be silent. He was always the loudest person in their group of friends. On more than one occasion, one of them literally had to tape his mouth shut. So seeing him all silent and gloomy worried everyone. Ren and Yusuke tried to take him out to get some ramen but he declined. The girls would often visit their apartment but Ryuji would just lock himself up in his room. Hifumi sent him a lot of texts and online messages but he never replied to them.

* * *

It was a Wednesday afternoon two weeks after their supposed meet-up in Shibuya when Hifumi finally decided to make a visit to his university. Ryuji has told her a lot of stories about his university but he never once mentioned what he studies. She was forced to wait outside the school building and hope that the blond hasn't gone home yet. She leaned her back against the wall, her mind going back to the time of their meet-up. Just why is it that Ryuji ran away from her?

"Hifumi-san?" The girl was pulled back from her thoughts when her name was called. She looked up to see an unfamiliar young man with black hair and glasses.

"Yes?" He gave her a small smile.

"Are you here for Ryuji?"

"Yes. Are you a friend of his?" The young man nodded.

"He's at the field, training. Do you want me to take you there?" The girl nodded and they start walking to the field.

"I'm Amamiya Ren by the way," he introduced. "Ryuji told me a lot about you." The name clicked inside Hifumi's head.

"Could you be the Ren-kun who shares the apartment with him? Morgana's owner? The one who's always out on dates?"

Ren smiled a little, embarrassed.

"Yeah. Thanks for keeping him company. He's really fond of you." Hifumi frowned a little.

"Then why did run away from me?"

"Why don't you ask him that yourself?" Hifumi looked out to see that they were already in the field and there, with his loud, blond hair, was Ryuji, running like his life depended on it. Hifumi blushed despite of herself. The man really looked good running.

Ren smiled at her before taking off after his friend. The girl couldn't hear what they were talking about but she saw Ryuji glance at her. He sighed and jogged in her direction before stopping in front of her.

Hifumi balled her fists. She was confused and hurt and frustrated at the way Ryuji's been acting the past two weeks. Tears welled up in her eyes and she swung a hand across Ryuji's face. The blond opened his eyes wide in shock.

"Ow! What the heck?!"

"That's what you get!" Hifumi shouted, not caring if she was making a scene, tears finally streaming down her cheeks. She poked Ryuji's chest hard as she spoke. "You just ran away from me! You didn't give me a reason! You never answered my messages! All I can think about these past two weeks is what I could have possibly done to make you hate me!" She wiped her tears with the back of her hand.

"I'm sorry," she finally hears him say, gently. She felt two strong hands wrap around her arms. "I'm such an idiot right?"

Hifumi sniffled, nodding her head in agreement. Ryuji hung his head, sighing.

"Honestly, when I saw you in Shibuya, I didn't know how to feel. I- I actually like you." The confession shocked Hifumi and she looked up to see the blond's tomato red face. "The idea of meeting up with you made me totally nervous and when I saw who you were, I totally flipped."

The girl frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, you're a celebrity, aren't you? You've been on tv. You're beautiful. Heck, Ann doesn't even begin to compare to you. And look at me. I'm just plain ol Ryuji." Hifumi remained silent for a while before finally speaking up.

"The errands my mother always gives me were tv appearances and magazine photoshoots," she started. "But as I've told you before, I don't really like them. I don't want to be an idol. I just want to be Hifumi, the girl who loves playing shogi and is clueless about the internet. The Hifumi you've met online and I are one and the same, you idiot. Don't be afraid of me."

"I know, I know. I really was an idiot. Sorry." Hifumi wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face against his neck. The man yelped, surprised at the sudden skinship. "Uhhh… Hifumi? I'm really sweaty from running, ya know." The girl shook her head.

"I don't care," she said, her voice muffled. "I'm making sure you don't run away from me again."

Ryuji's heart skipped a beat. Man, he thinks. This girl sure knows how to drive him crazy.

"I won't run away from you again," he promised, using his hand to tilt her head up.

"You promise?"

"I promise."

"Pinky swear?" She asked, holding her pinky finger up. He laughed.

"I have something better." He crouched down and pressed his lips against hers in a short kiss that left the girl pleasantly surprised. When he pulled away, her face was bright red. He grinned.

"Also, I have just one more question for you."

"Yeah? What is it?"

"You're not a scammer, are you?"

Hifumi's brows furrowed as she answered. "No. What makes you think that?"

Ryuji's face morphed into a lopsided grin. "Just checking." He heard his captain call his name from behind him and Ryuji ran back to his team, but not before giving Hifumi another kiss. The girl watched him run with a smile on her face.

* * *

 **A/N: Yay I was able to finish this fanfic lololol Totally experimenting with this ship though. I was initially gonna write one with Makoto and Ryuji but nah, I have other plans for Makoto. As for the Mystic Messenger fic I'm writing, I haven't started updating yet but I got the plot all down lololololol Forgive any spelling and grammatical errors. I never proofread this.**

 **-olympicmayhem**


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